Disney's WINNIE THE POOH, now on DVD

100 Acre Wood Still Magical

Parents and grandparents of toddlers and preschoolers can rejoice in the return of that silly old bear, Winnie the Pooh. Actually, kids from 1 to 99 can enjoy this one. All of our old favorites are in the 100 Acre Wood with Pooh: Piglet, Tigger, Rabbit, Owl, Kanga, Roo, Eeyore and, of course, Christopher Robin. Several songs are featured in the movie, including originals performed by Zooey Deschanel.

Narrated by John Cleese, the exceptionally creative movie takes place within the pages of a “Winnie the Pooh” book, which sometimes finds the characters crashing through or climbing up text. At one point the narrator notes, “He was so distracted that he didn’t notice he was walking onto the next paragraph.”

There are several adventures included in the script, which was inspired by 5 stories from author A.A. Milne’s books. One entails Owl misreading a note from Christopher Robin. Instead of telling the others that Christopher Robin will be ‘back soon,’ Owl tells the friends that he has been kidnapped by a scary creature named ‘Backson.' This misunderstanding leads to a particularly funny scene, involving Piglet as the only hope for rescuing the others from a pit. The verbal confusion would make Abbott and Costello very proud.

Disney’s hand-drawn animation is superb, the characters lovable and the music catchy. At 63 minutes, this is a perfect movie for little ones, and is a wonderful reminder for parents and grandparents to revisit or introduce children to a Winnie the Pooh book.

Special Features:

“Winnie the Pooh and His Story Too” (Blu-ray™)

Sing Along With the Movie (Blu-ray™)

Deleted Scenes (3 for DVD, 5 for Blu-ray™)

“The Ballad of Nessie” Theatrical Short (DVD and Blu-Ray™)

Mini Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: “Pooh’s Balloon” Short (DVD and Blu-Ray™)

Bottom-line: A traditional, slower paced, fun film that should charm the socks off children and adults alike.

Written by Tyna S. Cline and Sarah Adamson © November 29, 2011